The Rangers are trying a new combination to get Pavel Dorofeyev rolling, and for good reason: they brought him in to finish chances, not just create them.
New York spent the offseason trading for Dorofeyev from the Vegas Golden Knights and handing him a seven-year, $77 million deal with the idea that he could become the kind of scorer that changes games on a nightly basis. That expectation didn’t come out of nowhere. Over his last two seasons in Vegas, he scored 35 goals and then 37, building a reputation as one of the NHL’s more intriguing young finishers.
For the first seven games, though, the Rangers had him skating on a line with J.T. Miller and either Oliver Bjorkstrand or Tye Kartye. The results weren’t there on the scoresheet, but Mike Sullivan said the group wasn’t empty-calorie hockey.
“J.T. 's line analytically was strong,” Sullivan said. “They just weren’t scoring goals, but they were generating offense.”
Still, Sullivan decided to look for a different spark. Dorofeyev was moved onto a line with Mika Zibanejad and Gabe Perreault, giving him two players who can feed the puck and read the ice.
“Both Mika and Gabe have the ability to see the ice well, and if they get him the puck, potentially he can score goals for us,” Sullivan said.
The first try came Sunday night against the Vancouver Canucks, when Dorofeyev skated with Perreault and Zibanejad and put two shots on net. He didn’t register a point, but the Rangers are clearly hoping the fit grows from there.
There’s also the power play, where Dorofeyev has already built a dangerous profile. His flank shot has been one of the NHL’s most lethal weapons, and during the 2025-26 season he buried 20 power-play goals, second in the league behind only Wyatt Johnston. That production has not followed him to New York yet, and Sullivan made a change there, too.
He started the third period against the Canucks with Gabe Perreault on the first power-play unit instead of Dorofeyev.
“I thought Pav was fighting it a little bit, and sometimes players have those nights,” Sullivan said of the decision to take Dorofeyev off the first power-play unit to start the third period against the Canucks. “We thought we'd make a little tweak and see if we could get it going a little bit.
Obviously, Gabe was a part of the goal, so we were happy about that. But it was just situationally based on how we thought guys were going throughout the course of the night.”
Dorofeyev is in a cold stretch, nothing more dramatic than that. The Rangers believe his goal-scoring touch is still in there, and sometimes all it takes is one to get the rest following behind it.
In Other News...
Rangers Bottom Six Decision Just Sent A Tough Message
The Rangers have made another change to the bottom of their lineup, sending forward Cole Beaudoin to the AHLs Hartford Wolf Pack and bringing up Justin Dowling in his place. It is the sort of transaction that can look routine on paper, but for a young player trying to stick, it often says plenty about where he stands in the pecking order.
Beaudoin had just gotten his first taste of the NHL with New York before heading back to Hartford, where he has also played this season. Dowling, meanwhile, comes back with more league experience and a brief stint in Hartford already behind him, giving the Rangers a more established option as they keep sorting through the back end of the roster. [Read more 🡒]
Rangers Are Backing Up Contender Talk With A Start Fans Will Love
The early return on the Rangers opening month has been hard to ignore, especially at Madison Square Garden, where theyve won their first five home games and suddenly look every bit like a team backing up the preseason contender chatter. New York has jumped to the top of the league in wins, and the broader profile is just as encouraging, with the Rangers showing up near the top in goals against, goals scored and penalty kill percentage.
A strong team start can hide a lot of individual stories, but this one keeps producing them. Alexis Lafrenire has been one of the most visible finishers, while Dylan Garand, Mika Zibanejad, Adam Fox, Will Cuylle, J.T. Miller and Tye Kartye have each added their own marks to the first stretch of the season. The bigger question now is whether this fast start is the foundation for something lasting, or just the kind of hot October that gets a lot louder once the schedule starts to bite. [Read more 🡒]
Rangers Suddenly Have A Big Crease Question After Shesterkin Injury
Igor Shesterkins season-ending injury has left the Rangers with a crease issue that suddenly matters a lot more than it did a few weeks ago, and Dylan Garand has been thrust into the conversation at just the right time. The young goaltender has handled the opening stretch well enough to give New York some reason for optimism, even as the larger reality remains that the team has had to pivot quickly after losing its No. 1 option.
Garands early work has helped steady things, but the situation still feels fragile for a Rangers team trying to keep its season on track without its star goalie. The organization now has to decide how much trust to place in a netminder who was not long ago viewed as depth, and the answer could shape how the rest of the year unfolds in front of him. [Read more 🡒]